What will you be Grandma? by Nanette Newman illustrated by Emma Chichester Clark

"One day Lily asked her grandma, 'What do you think you'll be when you grow up?' 'Well,' said her grandma, 'a lot of people think I've grown up already.' 'Oh no,' said Lily, 'you've got a long way to go yet."

Grandma could grow wings and fly around the world looking for people who are kind; or she could become an artist and paint rainbows; or a gardener who makes delicious food. But really Grandma just wants to be a grandma and to simply love little Lily.

I have a few questions about this book. Nanette Newman is an actress and she has written over 30 books. Her granddaughter is called Lily. Emma Chichester Clark has a series of wonderful book about Blue Kangaroo and the child in these books is also called Lily. So did Nanette Newman meet Emma Chichester Clark? Did the publisher see this link and ask Emma to illustrate this book? This book was published in 2011 but I have been able to find new copies (in hardcover). 

This grandma is not a stout grey-haired lady but a spunky, lithe, bespectacled brunette who happily takes part in every flight of fancy—sometimes decked out in feathers or looking quite fetching in everything from butterfly wings to a wizard hat—until it is time for bed. Young readers will take the cue from this slightly silly tale and enjoy coming up with their own ideas for what their grandparents or other family members might grow up to become. Kirkus

Unusually for a picture book, the narrative is nearly solely based on dialogue between grandmother and granddaughter; two fonts are used for young audiences to distinguish the two characters. Library Mice

I recently talked about A Small Person's Guide to Grandmas. what will you be, Grandma is the perfect companion book.